World

Proof That Rush Hour Is Kinda Terrible Everywhere

Your day can be defined by your morning commute. Cramming into a packed subway car or blaring your horn in bumper-to-bumper traffic is much more stressful than, say, snoozing on a train or riding a gondola up a picturesque mountain.

Below, photographers from around the world beautifully capture the rush hour experience and show the different ways people travel to and from work.

Rush Hour Around the World

New York City

Commuters hurrying past food concessions on an underground concourse inside New York's Penn Station. The busiest passenger train station in the United States is a 1960s-era labyrinth built in what is essentially the basement on Madison Square Garden. Two decades after ambitious plans were unveiled to improve Penn Station, there are few visible signs of change.

Image: Mary Altaffer/Associated Press

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

On packed subways and crowded highways, billions of people worldwide participate in the daily commute to and from work.

Image: Leo Correa/Associated Press

Teipei, Taiwan

There are 15.09 million motorcycles in Taiwan, or 67.6 for every 100 people, according to statistics from Taiwan's 2013 official Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics.

Image: Wally Santana/Associated Press

La Paz, Bolivia

The system that lets commuters get to La Paz, Bolivia, is the world’s highest cable-car system, and transports thousands of passengers about 13 feet above sea level.

Image: Juan Karita/Associated Press

Moscow, Russia

Commuters ride on escalators in the Kiyevskaya subway station in Moscow, called the Metro. About 9 million commuters use Metro there each day.

Image: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Associated Press

Soweto, South Africa

Train commuters hold on to the front and side of an overcrowded passenger train in Soweto, South Africa.

Image: Themba Hadebe/Associated Press

Bangkok, Thailand

Commuters get off a motorized boat during rush hour on a pier at the Saen Saeb canal in Bangkok, Thailand.

Image: Sakchai Lalit/Associated Press

Dubai

The 5-year-old metro system has grown from serving 60,000 passengers daily in 2009 to 500,000 commuters today.

Image: Kamran Jebreili)/Associated Press

Tijuana, Mexico

An average of 50,000 cars and 25,000 pedestrians cross daily through the San Ysidro Port of Entry, the Western Hemisphere's busiest border crossing.

Image: Gregory Bull/Associated Press

Paris, France

Commuters arrive at Gare Saint-Lazare train station in Paris.

Image: Francois Mori/Associated Press

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Getting off a free ferry connecting parts of Amsterdam.

Image: Peter Dejong/Associated Press

Beijing, China

Rushing into a train garage during a morning rush hour at a subway station in Beijing.

Image: Andy Wong/Associated Press

Sydney, Australia

The headlights and taillights of moving cars streak past those waiting for their turns at an intersection.

Image: Rick Rycroft/Associated Press

Chicago

Riding a water taxi up the Chicago River to Michigan Avenue in Chicago.

Image: M. Spencer Green/Associated Press

Pyongyang, North Korea

Foreign visitors are usually only allowed to take one or two stops on Pyongyang's north-south Chollima subway line.

Image: Wong Maye-E/Associated Press

San Francisco

Lights from evening rush hour traffic move over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

Image: Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

Hong Kong, China

The Hong Kong shopping district of Mongkok gets incredibly crowded during rush hour. On packed subways and crowded streets, billions of people worldwide participate in a short-distance population shift twice a day.

Image: Kin Cheung/Associated Press

New Delhi, India

A boy sells coconuts during rush hour in the middle of heavy traffic near an intersection.

Image: Tsering Topgyal/Associated Press

Harare, Zimbabwe

Crossing the road in the high-density suburb of Mbare.

Image: Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/Associated Press

Los Angeles

A woman smells her bouquet while walking on the Wilshire Boulevard overpass as traffic moves along the 110 Freeway during evening rush hour in Los Angeles.

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